If you’re looking to get on the property ladder, you may want to avoid certain areas so you don’t pay over the odds.
New research has revealed the regions in the UK where you’re most likely to be able to afford to buy, as well as the areas most out of reach, with the results providing a snapshot of the industry for hopeful homeowners.
The analysis, by Nationwide Building Society, found that first-time buyers face spending at least six times their annual wages to get on the property ladder in nearly half (45%) of Britain’s local authority areas. This is up on previous years, as affordability becomes more stretched.
Using official house price and earnings data from 2021, the London borough of Kensington and Chelsea came out in the report as the least affordable place for those looking to get their name on a deed, while East Ayrshire in Scotland remains the most affordable.
First-time buyers face paying nearly 15 times their earnings to buy a home in Kensington and Chelsea, compared with just under two and-a-half times earnings in East Ayrshire.
Results suggest we’re seeing the impact of a race for more living space during the coronavirus pandemic, as people relocated and may have priced other buyers out of the market in more rural areas.
Andrew Harvey, a senior economist at Nationwide, said: ‘Most authorities in the South West (of England) have seen a deterioration in affordability over the last year, but Cotswold replaced Bath and North East Somerset as the least affordable area, with a house price earnings ratio of 8.6.
‘This district includes sought-after towns such as Cirencester, Tetbury and Moreton-in-Marsh.’
Swindon remains the most affordable area in the South West, with a house price- to-earnings ratio of 5.4, he said.
Andrew continued: ‘Rutland, the smallest historic county in England, remains the least affordable authority in the East Midlands, while in the West Midlands it is Malvern Hills.’
There have been various changes throughout the regions, like the Vale of Glamorgan replacing Cardiff as Wales’s least affordable place with a 17% year-on-year price rise.
Some things remain the same, however, with the Lake District and Copeland keeping their top and bottom spots in the North West of England.
In London, Bromley is the most affordable borough, with a house price-to-earnings ratio of 7.4. Not bad on the surface, but way beyond the most expensive locales elsewhere in the UK.
Here are the full results from Nationwide Building Society, with the average house price-to-earnings ratio.
Least affordable places for first-time buyers in each area of the UK
-
London
- Kensington and Chelsea, 14.7
- South East
- East of England
- South West
- East Midlands
- Yorkshire and the Humber
- West Midlands
- North West
- Wales
- Scotland
- North East
Most affordable places for first-time buyers in each area of the UK
- Scotland
- North West
- North East
- Wales
- Yorkshire and the Humber
- West Midlands
- East Midlands
- East of England
- South West
- South East
- London
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